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What Is Rendang?
Rendang is a rich and tender coconut beef stew which is explosively flavorful and beef rendang is the most popular rendang.
Called “rendang daging” in local language, it’s arguably the most famous beef recipe in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore.
Origins of Rendang
Beef rendang is of Indonesian origin, a delicious concoction from the Minangkabau ethnic group of Indonesia.
It’s often served at ceremonial occasions and to honor guests.
I believe the dish came to Malaysia when the Minangkabau settlers from Sumatra migrated to the southern part of the Malay peninsula during the era of the Melaka Sultanate.
This dish is well loved by many Malaysians, especially the Malay community.
While beef rendang is the poster child, there are variations such as chicken rendang and lamb rendang.
They are all absolutely delicious and best with rice, or Malaysian coconut milk rice (nasi lemak).
What Kind of Beef for Rendang?
I used boneless beef short ribs or stew beef. The cut of beef will ensure that you have soft and tender beef once it’s cooked.
You have to cut the beef into small pieces to ensure that after the slow cooking, each chunk of beef is tender with the aromatic rendang curry paste.
Secret Ingredient of Rendang Sauce
To make the best rendang, you need to have the secret ingredient which is kerisik or toasted coconut.
You also need to cook on low heat to slowly stew and simmer the meat and reduce the rendang sauce.
I read that the Minangkabaus save the dish for months as the complex taste and flavor develop over time.
The Best and Most Authentic Rendang
I suggest that you make a big portion so you have some leftover. The flavors and aroma become more intense the next day.
Do try my recipe because it’s the most delicious and best beef rendang recipe you will find online!
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 416 calories per serving.
What to Serve with This Recipe?
Serve this dish with rice, noodles or bread. For a traditional Malaysian meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Beef Rendang (The Best!)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. boneless beef short ribs, cut into cubes
- 5 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 stick cinnamon (about 2-inch length)
- 3 cloves
- 3 star anise
- 3 cardamom pods
- 1 lemongrass (cut into 4-inch length and pounded)
- 1 cup thick coconut milk (coconut cream)
- 1 cup water
- 2 teaspoons tamarind pulp (soaked in some warm water for the juice and discard the seeds)
- 6 kaffir lime leaves (very finely sliced)
- 6 tablespoons kerisik (toasted coconut)
- 1 tablespoon sugar or palm sugar to taste
- salt to taste
Spice Paste:
- 5 shallots
- 1 inch galangal
- 3 lemongrass (white part only)
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 inch ginger
- 10-12 dried chilies (soaked in warm water and seeded)
Instructions
- Chop the spice paste ingredients and then blend it in a food processor until fine.
- Heat the oil in a stew pot, add the spice paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and cardamom and stir-fry until aromatic. Add the beef and the pounded lemongrass and stir for 1 minute. Add the coconut milk, tamarind juice, water, and simmer on medium heat, stirring frequently until the meat is almost cooked.
- Add the kaffir lime leaves, kerisik (toasted coconut), sugar or palm sugar, stirring to blend well with the meat.
- Lower the heat to low, cover the lid, and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is really tender and the gravy has dried up. Add more salt and sugar to taste. Serve immediately with steamed rice and save some for overnight.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Hi, planning on making this tomorrow to reheat and eat the next day as I won’t have time to make on the same day – what’s the best way of reheating if the completed dish is quite dry? Looking forward to seeing the end result 🤌🏽
Hi Phil, beef rendang is supposed to be on the drier side, and will always taste better then next day. In Malaysia, we usually cook beef rendang a day ahead to allow the flavours to meld overnight.
You can warm it up over the stove on low heat with a little bit of added water. If you choose to heat up in the microwave, add a little bit of water and cover with cling film to prevent any spatter.
Oh my goodness, this is utterly delicious. I used a mixture of short rib and beef cheek and cooked in a slow cooker on the gentlest of simmers for 5 hours. Rendang heaven!
Hi Ade, your version sounds really delicious.
What kind of dried chilis do you use? Are they chiles de arbol?
Hi Luke. You can use chiles de arbol, but note that they can be pretty spicy. In Malaysia and Indonesia, we usually use a mix of spicy and less spicy dried chillies. You can use dried Kashmiri chilli peppers too.
I’m cooking this up tomorrow. It will be only my 2nd time cooking a Rendang. I look forward to trying yours. Question, how big are the shallots? or what is a rough total weight?
Hi Wayne, for rendang or curries in general, it’s best to use Asian shallots, which are on the smaller side compared to European shallots, but pack a stronger flavour. Asian shallots tend to be around 1-inch in length.
Cooked this last night – absolutely delicious, probably the best I tasted. My cooking time was SIGNIFICANTLY longer than 1.5 hours before it was finally reduced and brown (approx 3.5h for me) but of course, that could have been my measurements or lower heat. After a couple of hours of not much happening I half uncovered it and that made all the difference…
I am so glad you enjoyed it. Yes, the lower temperature can cause the cooking to take longer.